KR100276127B1 - Processing apparatus and method for process - Google Patents

Abstract

The processing apparatus of the present invention includes a processing chamber which performs a predetermined treatment on a processing target object, a transfer chamber having a carrying means for carrying in and taking out a holding body holding the processing body with respect to a processing structure, and a predetermined inertness of the inside of the transfer chamber. Inert gas supply and exhaust means for maintaining in a gas atmosphere, and adjacent to the transport chamber, and having a volume that can accommodate the retainer at least, and carrying the retainer to the transport chamber while the atmosphere in the transport chamber is blocked from outside air. And a holding body accommodating chamber capable of carrying in therein, an internal atmosphere replacing means for allowing the inside of the holding body accommodating chamber to be replaced with a vacuum atmosphere or a predetermined inert gas atmosphere, and adjacent to the holding body accommodating chamber. A to-be-processed object chamber provided with a conveying means for conveying to the holding body in a storage chamber is provided.

Description

Treatment device and treatment method

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a schematic plan view of the processing apparatus of FIG.

3 is a cross-sectional view of the bottom of the housing chamber.

4 is a cross-sectional view of a conventional processing apparatus.

* Explanation of symbols for main parts of the drawings

1: process tube 2: manifold

2a: flange 3: exhaust pipe

4, 12: gas introduction pipe 6: protective cover

7a: flange 7b: bottom

7: wafer boat 8: auto shutter

10: conveying room 11: lifting mechanism

11a: boat elevator 11b: ball screw device

11, 15, 31, 33, 36, 40: conveying device 13: gas discharge pipe

15b: articulated arm 15: conveying mechanism

15a: drive unit 20b: wafer boat mounting table

20: wafer boat accommodation chamber 20a: housing

21: front door 22: rear door

23, 24, 25: pipeline (vacuum piping) 30: wafer transfer chamber

31: I / O port 32: carrier transfer

33: elevator 34: transfer stage

35: carrier stock stage 36: wafer transfer

37: transfer elevator 40: posture change mechanism

42: lifting device 44, 74: N ₂ gas supply unit

46, 48, 50, 54, 56, 60, 64, 68, 70: on-off valve

49, 52, 58: vacuum pump 62: suction pump

66: mass flow controller 68, 70: gas conversion valve

72: drive control unit 76: process gas supply unit

83: pin 84: detection circuit

85: heater 87: hole

88: connection plate 89: detection means

89b: light emitting portion 89c: light receiving portion

89a: movable detector 140: load lock chamber

150: conveying means C, 90: wafer carrier

W: Wafer

TECHNICAL FIELD This invention relates to the processing apparatus and processing method which perform a predetermined process with respect to a to-be-processed object, for example, a semiconductor wafer.

Although various apparatuses are known as a processing apparatus that performs a predetermined process on a target object, for example, in a semiconductor manufacturing process, an oxide film is formed or heat is formed on a semiconductor wafer (hereinafter simply referred to as a wafer) which is a target object. Various processing apparatuses for processing such as forming a thin film by CVD or forming an impurity concentration region by thermal diffusion are used.

As such a processing apparatus, many vertical apparatuses are employ | adopted in the conventional horizontal apparatus in recent years. This vertical processing apparatus includes a wafer boat in which several wafers are accommodated in a high temperature atmosphere in a heated substantially cylindrical vertical processing chamber (hereinafter referred to as a process tube); A predetermined process gas can be introduced into the process tube to perform various processes on the wafer.

4 shows an example of a vertical heat treatment apparatus. As shown in the figure, in the vertical heat treatment apparatus, for example, a manifold 2 is provided below the quartz process tube 1, and an exhaust pipe 3 and a gas introduction pipe 4 provided in the manifold 2 are provided. As a result, gas supply and exhaust to the process tube 1 can be achieved.

A tubular heater 5 is provided outside the process tube 1 so as to surround the process tube 1, and the heater 5 can control the heating of the inside of the process tube 1 to a desired temperature. It is supposed to be.

The wafer boat 7 containing a plurality of wafers W is inserted into the process tube 1 from the transfer chamber 10 by the boat elevator 11a constituting the transfer mechanism, and the flange of the wafer boat 7 is provided. The inside of the process tube 1 is sealed by fitting 7a to the flange portion 2a of the manifold 2 in a sealed state. In the load lock chamber 140 provided adjacent to the transfer chamber 10, the wafer carrier C conveyed by the carrier conveyance means which is not shown in figure, and the wafer W accommodated in the wafer carrier C are wafers. Wafer conveying means 150 is provided for conveying the wafer W provided to the boat 7 or vice versa to the wafer carrier C. In the case where a predetermined process is performed on the wafer W using the processing apparatus configured as described above, first, the load carrier chamber 140 moves the wafer carrier C through the front 21 by the carrier conveying means. ) And the wafer W housed in the wafer carrier C under an inert gas atmosphere (non-oxygen atmosphere) such as N ₂ (nitrogen), and the inside of the load lock chamber 140 in an outside atmosphere. Is stored in the wafer boat 7 via the rear door 22 by the wafer transfer means 150.

Thereafter, the wafer boat 7 is lifted into the boat elevator 11a and brought into the process tube 1 to hold the process tube 1 in an airtight state, and then into the process tube 1 through the exhaust pipe 3. The gas is discharged to bring the inside of the process tube 1 into a predetermined vacuum state.

When the process tube 1 reaches a predetermined vacuum state, process gas is introduced into the process tube 1 through the gas introduction tube 4 to perform a desired process on the wafer W. As shown in FIG.

After the treatment, the process gas in the process tube 1 is discharged through the exhaust pipe 3 to bring the inside of the process tube 1 into a predetermined vacuum state, and thereafter, the process tube 1 is passed through the gas introduction tube 4. N ₂ gas is introduced into the.

Then, at the stage where the N ₂ gas pressure in the process tube 1 becomes equal to the N ₂ gas pressure in the transfer chamber 10, the wafer boat 7 is lowered to lift the wafer boat 7 from within the process tube 1. It carries out, and the processed wafer W accommodated in the wafer boat 7 by the wafer conveyance means 150 is accommodated in the wafer carrier C in the load lock chamber 140 again.

In the processing operation in the vertical processing apparatus as described above, the wafer W is brought into the process tube 1 together with the wafer boat 7 from the transfer chamber 10 or after the processing. In the case of carrying out from the process tube 1 together with the 7), since the vicinity of the opening of the process tube 1 is a very high temperature atmosphere, if there is an atmosphere therein, oxygen (O ₂ ) in the atmosphere There is a problem that a natural oxide film is formed on the surface of the wafer W.

Moreover, as this kind of processing apparatus which repeats the process of processing the wafer W, gas-like impurities, such as carbon, generate | occur | produce in the conveyance chamber 10, or particle-like impurities (pericle), such as oil debris and dust, Easy to occur

Therefore, if such impurities are present in the transfer chamber 10, the impurities adhere to the wafer W or cause a chemical reaction to deteriorate the characteristics of the semiconductor element or lower the productivity.

In addition, the N ₂ gas atmosphere in the transfer chamber 10 is abnormally heated by heat release from the process tube 1 or radiant heat from the processed wafer W heated at a high temperature. While the inside of the transfer chamber 10 is kept in an airtight state, loading and unloading of the wafer boat 7 to and from the process tube 1 are performed under an inert gas atmosphere (non-oxygen atmosphere) such as N ₂ gas. By exchanging the gas in the conveyance chamber 10, the inside of the conveyance chamber 10 is kept in a clean state where the atmosphere does not enter, and the heat in the conveyance chamber 10 is prevented from filling up.

Specifically, in order to prevent invasion of the atmosphere from the outside, the atmosphere in the conveyance chamber 10 is always maintained at a positive pressure, and clean inert gas as the purge gas is introduced into the conveyance chamber 10 through the gas introduction pipe 12. While always being introduced, the inert gas in the transfer chamber 10 is constantly discharged to the outside through the exhaust pipe 13 together with the impurities to maintain the inert gas atmosphere in the transfer chamber 10 at a positive pressure and high purity.

However, even if only the transfer chamber 10 is maintained at a positive pressure and high purity, the distribution in the load lock chamber 140 from which the wafers W are carried out and carried in is left unattended, and thus the above-described problems cannot be sufficiently solved. none.

For this reason, when the wafer carrier C which accommodated the wafer W was carried into the load lock chamber 140, after closing the front door 21 and sealing the load lock chamber 140, the load lock chamber ( A method of exhausting the air remaining in the 140 and purging the atmosphere in the load lock chamber 140 with an inert gas is adopted.

And the wafer W is conveyed toward the conveyance chamber 10 from the load lock chamber 140 through the rear door 2 in the clean atmosphere by which atmospheric | air was substituted by the inert gas by this method.

By the way, the wafer carrier C can accommodate 25 wafers W, for example, and the wafer boat 7 can accommodate 50-100 wafers W, for example. Therefore, when the wafer boat 7 can accommodate 100 wafers W, and the wafer carrier C can accommodate 25 wafers W, the load lock chamber 140 is loaded. 4 wafer carriers C must be kept in the load lock chamber 140 when transferring them to the wafer boat 7 in the transfer chamber 10, and wafer transfer in the load lock chamber 140 is performed. Since the means 150 is also arranged, the load lock chamber 140 inevitably has a large volume.

As described above, although the inert gas is supplied and exhausted to the transfer chamber 10 at all times, a large volume of rod is consumed even though a large amount of inert gas is consumed even if the inside of the transfer chamber 10 is kept at a positive pressure and high purity. When even the atmosphere in the lock chamber 140 is purged by the inert gas, the consumption amount of the inert gas as a whole reaches an enormous amount, and it is expensive and uneconomical. In fact, since the conveyance chamber 10 and the load lock chamber 140 form a large box shape having a width dimension of about 1 meter and a height of about 2 meters, when the interior of these is first replaced by inert gas from the atmosphere, At the same time, a large amount of inert gas must be introduced into the room, and a long time is required until sufficient gas replacement is performed, and processing efficiency is lowered.

As a means for solving this problem, a method of newly introducing an inert gas into these rooms by vacuum sucking the interior of the transfer chamber 10 and the load lock chamber 140 with a vacuum pump can also be considered. It is necessary to make the housing panel structure of the apparatus main body including the conveyance chamber 10 and the load lock chamber 140 into an airtightness and a thick and high rigidity which can break under negative pressure, and raise the manufacturing cost.

In addition, since the wafer carrier C is exposed to the atmosphere before being brought into the load lock chamber 140 and is placed in a very contaminated state, the contaminated wafer carrier C is brought into the load lock chamber 140. Purging the inside of the load lock chamber 140 in one state cannot be said to be a very preferable method in terms of increasing the purging effect.

An object of the present invention is to provide a processing apparatus which can reduce the consumption amount of an inert gas and can prevent formation of a natural oxide film on the surface of a workpiece, adhesion of impurities to the workpiece, and the like.

The object of the present invention is achieved by the following treatment apparatus. That is, this processing apparatus is a conveyance chamber provided with the process chamber which performs a predetermined process to a to-be-processed object, the conveyance means which carries in and out to a process chamber the holding body which hold | maintained the to-be-processed object, and the inside of a conveyance chamber with predetermined inert gas. An inert gas supply and exhaust means for maintaining the atmosphere, a volume adjacent to the transport chamber, having a volume that can accommodate the retainer at least, and carrying the retainer to the transport chamber with the atmosphere in the transport chamber blocked from outside; A holding body accommodating chamber which can be carried in; an internal atmosphere replacing means which allows the inside of the holding body accommodating chamber to be replaced with a vacuum atmosphere or a predetermined inert gas atmosphere; and adjacent to the holding body accommodating chamber; A to-be-processed object chamber provided with a conveying means for conveying to the holding body in a chamber is provided.

In the above configuration, it is preferable that the holder housing chamber has a minimum volume that can accommodate only the holder.

This is achieved, for example, by providing a conveyance mechanism in the conveyance chamber that conveys the retainer between the conveying means of the conveyance chamber and the retainer accommodation chamber.

As a result, the space of the holder body can be made the minimum space that can be accommodated by the holder, and the substitution of the vacuum atmosphere or the inert gas atmosphere in the holder body can be promptly performed. Can improve ability.

EXAMPLE

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

The configuration of a vertical wafer processing apparatus in accordance with an embodiment of the processing apparatus of the present invention is shown in FIG.

As shown in the drawing, the processing apparatus of this embodiment accommodates a process tube 1 as a processing chamber that performs a predetermined process on a wafer W as an object to be processed, and several, for example, 100 wafers W. Conveying chamber 10 and wafer carrier C having a closed structure, which are provided with a lifting mechanism 11 for inserting or removing a wafer boat 7 as a possible retainer with respect to the process tube 1, and a transfer mechanism 15 to be described later. Adjacent to these chambers 10 and 30 between the wafer transfer chamber 30 and the transfer chamber 10 and the wafer transfer chamber 30 for transferring the wafer W accommodated in the transfer chamber 10 toward the transfer chamber 10. The main part is comprised by the wafer boat accommodating chamber (holding chamber) 20 arrange | positioned and which comprises the load lock chamber which has the minimum volume which can accommodate only the wafer boat 7.

The front auto door 21 and the rear door 22 can be opened and closed between the wafer boat accommodation chamber 20 and the wafer transfer chamber 30 and between the wafer boat accommodation chamber 20 and the transfer chamber 10, respectively. When the front auto door 21 and the rear door 22 are blocked, the inside of the wafer boat accommodation chamber 20 is kept in a sealed state.

The wafer boat containing chamber (20), N ₂ is connected via an on-off valve 46 in vacuum line 23 and, N ₂ gas supply unit 44 that is connected via an on-off valve 54 by the vacuum pump 52 Gas discharge pipes 25 are connected to each other.

Therefore, the inside of the wafer boat accommodation chamber 20 can be replaced with a predetermined vacuum atmosphere or an inert gas atmosphere such as N ₂ gas through these pipelines 23, 24 and 25. The driving of the pumps 52, 58 and the N ₂ gas supply unit 44, and the opening / closing operations of the opening / closing valves 46, 54, 56 are all controlled by the drive control unit 72.

As shown in FIG. 3, the bottom of the wafer boat accommodation chamber 20 is connected to the bottom of the wafer boat accommodation chamber 20 through a bellows 85 connected to the bottom and a connecting plate 88 connected to the bottom of the bellows 85 in a sealed state. The pin 83 is provided in the up-and-down movement.

The upper end of the pin 83 has a flange-shaped wafer boat placing table 20b (wafer boat placing table 20b) which protrudes inside the wafer boat storage chamber 20 in an atmospheric state in which the bellows 85 is naturally held. Protrudes from an upper surface of the wafer boat placing table 20b through a hole 87 formed in the housing 20a which forms the wafer boat storage chamber 20 integrally).

Under the bellows 85, a detection means 89 for detecting the presence or absence of the wafer boat 7 is provided. The detecting means 89 is provided below the position of the movable detector 89a connected to the connecting plate 88 and the movable detector 89a in the standby state in which the bellows 85 is naturally held. It consists of an optical sensor comprised from a pair of light emitting part 89b and the light receiving part 89c arrange | positioned by narrowing the vertical movement path of the detection body 89a.

In this case, the light emitting portion 89b and the light receiving portion 89c are connected to the detection circuit 84.

Therefore, the wafer boat 7 is accommodated in the wafer boat accommodation chamber 20 and the pin 83 protruding from the upper surface of the wafer boat mounting base 20b is pressed downward by the bottom portion 7b of the wafer boat 7. Enter the rear.

When the pin 83 is pushed down, the bellows 883 extends through the connecting plate 88, the movable detector 89a connected to the connecting plate 88 is lowered, and the light emitting portion is moved by the movable detector 89a. Light from the 89b to the light receiving portion 89c is blocked. The blocking of the debt from the light emitting portion 89b to the light receiving portion 89c is detected by the detection circuit 84, and accordingly, the wafer boat 7 is set in the wafer boat accommodation chamber 20.

In addition, the detection of the presence or absence of the wafer boat 7 does not necessarily need to be performed by such detection means 89, for example, it is provided in the ceiling, the bottom part, or the wall part of the wafer boat accommodation chamber 20 through a seal structure. The sensor can be used to determine the presence or absence of the wafer boat 7 by any detecting means.

As shown in FIG. 1, the process tube 1 is formed from quartz, and the external shape is comprised as the vertical cylindrical container of reverse U shape in cross section.

The heater 5 is provided outside the process tube 1 so as to surround the process tube 1. The process tube 1 and the heater 5 are covered with a protective cover 6 in which a cooling pipe, a heat insulating material, or the like are assembled.

The manifold 2 is connected to the lower opening end of the process tube 1. The manifold 2 is formed in the cylindrical shape which has a flange part in the upper part and the lower part.

In the outer wall of the manifold 2, a gas introduction pipe 4 for introducing a predetermined processing gas into the process tube 1, and an exhaust pipe 3 for exhausting the processed gas from the process tube 1. These are connected, respectively.

The gas introduction pipe 4 is connected to the N ₂ gas supply part 74 and the processing gas supply part 76 through gas conversion valves 68 and 70, thereby selecting the processing gas and the N ₂ gas. To be introduced into the process tube 1. The mass flow controller 66 is provided in the gas inlet pipe 4 located downstream from the gas conversion valves 68 and 70, and the mass flow controller 66 is used in the process tube 1. The supply amount of the processing gas or N ₂ gas to be supplied can be arbitrarily controlled.

In addition, the gas supply into the process tube 1 can be stopped by the on-off valve 64. The exhaust pipe 3 is connected to the vacuum pump 49 via the on-off valve 50.

Moreover, each drive of the N ₂ gas supply part 74, the process gas supply part 76, the mass flow controller 66, the vacuum pump 49, and each valve 50, 64, 68, 70 is carried out. Are controlled by the drive control unit 72.

The conveyance chamber 10 is a hermetically sealed structure which welds a stainless steel panel over the whole surface, or seals it with 0 ring seal, for example.

The gas introduction pipe 12 connected to the N ₂ gas supply part 44 via the opening / closing valve 48 at the appropriate position of the upper and lower part of the conveyance chamber 10, and the opening / closing valve | bulb to the suction pump 62 The gas discharge pipe 13 connected through 60 is connected.

As a result, inert gas (N ₂ gas), which is clean as a purge gas, is always introduced into the transfer chamber 10 through the gas introduction pipe 12, while the inert gas in the transfer chamber 10 together with the impurities is exhaust gas 13 By constantly discharging to the outside through the inert gas atmosphere in the conveying chamber 10 to maintain a high pressure and at the same time.

The driving of the pump 62 and the opening / closing operations of the on / off valves 48 and 60 are all controlled by the drive control unit 72.

The elevating mechanism 11 arranged in the transfer chamber 10 is comprised by the boat elevator 11a which mounts and holds the wafer boat 17, and the ball screw apparatus 11b which moves up and down the boat elevator 11a. have.

In this invention, since it is not necessary to set the inside of the conveyance chamber 10 to a vacuum state so that it may mention later, it is not necessary to make the panel which comprises the conveyance chamber 10 high rigidity.

Therefore, the ball screw device 11b of the elevating mechanism 11 may be fixed to the wall of the transfer chamber 10 without being self-supporting.

The conveyance mechanism 15 which conveys the wafer boat 7 between the boat elevator 1la of the elevating mechanism 11 and the wafer boat accommodation chamber 20 is arrange | positioned at the wafer boat accommodation chamber side in the conveyance chamber 10. .

The conveyance mechanism 15 is connected to the drive part 15a for horizontal rotation (rotation) and elevating provided in the exterior of the conveyance chamber 10, and the transmission shaft of the drive part 15a located in the conveyance chamber 10, And the articulated arm 15b holding the wafer boat 7.

Moreover, the auto shutter 8 which opens and closes this opening part is provided in the opening part of the process tube 1 located in the upper part of the conveyance chamber 10. As shown in FIG. By closing this auto shutter 8, radiant heat from the process tube 1 toward the conveyance chamber 10 can be prevented.

The wafer transfer chamber 30 is installed in a clean room (not shown) under an air atmosphere through the HEPA filter. In the wafer transfer chamber 30, an I / O port 31 capable of mounting a wafer carrier C for accommodating several, for example, 25 wafers W is provided. The posture converting mechanism 40 is arrange | positioned at the I / O port 31 two each at right and left. The posture converting mechanism 40 is configured to rotate the wafer carrier 90 in an upward state (a state in which the wafer W is held up; shown in solid lines in FIG. 1) placed on the upper surface of the posture converting mechanism 40 by 90 degrees. The attitude change operation can be performed by switching to the transverse state (indicated by the dashed-dotted line in FIG. 1) or, conversely, from the transverse state to the upward direction.

In the wafer transfer chamber 30, the carrier transfer 32 is provided on the rear side of the I / O port 31 so as to be able to move up and down through the elevator 33. A transfer stage 34 is provided on the rear side of the carrier transfer 32, and a carrier stock stage 35 is provided above the transfer stage 34. The carrier stock stage 35 can move up and down according to the elevating operation of the elevating device 42 of the elevator 33, and articulates the wafer carrier C which is in a transverse state by the posture converting mechanism 40. It can be received by the arm and conveyed to the carrier stock stage 35.

The carrier stock stage 35 is formed of several shelves which can hold the wafer carrier C conveyed by the carrier transfer 32 in two rows and four steps, respectively, as it is transversely.

On the side of the wafer boat accommodation chamber of the wafer transfer chamber 30, the wafer transfer 36 is supported by the transfer elevator 37 so that the lifting and lowering is possible.

As the wafer transfer 36 moves up and down, the wafer W in the wafer carrier C on the transfer stage 34 is taken out one by one and stored in the wafer boat 7 accommodated in the wafer boat accommodation chamber 20 to hold or hold the wafer W. In contrast, the wafer W can be returned from the wafer boat 7 into the wafer carrier C on the transfer stage 34.

Moreover, each conveying apparatus 11, 15, 31, 33, 36, 40, etc. which were demonstrated above are drive-controlled by the drive part which is not shown in figure.

Next, operation | movement of the processing apparatus of the said structure is demonstrated.

First, the wafer carrier C is transferred to the transfer stage 34 by the above-described operation. In the state where the wafer boat 7 is accommodated in the wafer boat accommodating chamber 20, the front door 21 of the wafer boat accommodating chamber 20 opens, and the wafer boat accommodating chamber 20 and the wafer transfer chamber 30 are opened. To communicate with each other.

At this time, the insides of the wafer boat accommodation chamber 20 and the wafer transfer chamber 30 are in an atmospheric atmosphere. In this state, the wafer W in the wafer carrier C on the transfer stage 34 is accommodated in the wafer boat 7 in the wafer boat accommodating chamber 20 by the wafer transfer 36, and a predetermined number of wafers are provided. After (W) is stored in the wafer boat 7, the front door 21 is closed so that the inside of the wafer boat accommodation chamber 20 is kept in a sealed state. Subsequently, the vacuum pump 52 is operated to set the inside of the wafer boat accommodating chamber 20 through a vacuum pipe 23 to a predetermined vacuum state, or the N ₂ gas supply part 44 is operated to operate under normal pressure or reduced pressure. N ₂ gas introducing tube 24, the wafer boat by what it by the N ₂ gas to the discharge pipe 25 and supplied into the wafer boat containing chamber 20 is discharged hamkkye and waits for the N ₂ gas (7) by and wafer ( W) is completely blocked from the atmosphere to prevent the formation of a delayed oxide film on the wafer W.

If the wafer boat containing chamber 20, I is set at a predetermined vacuum state, the Thereafter, N ₂ gas into the wafer boat containing chamber 20 through the N ₂ gas supply pipe 24 from the N ₂ gas supply unit 44 is Is introduced.

Then, the wafer boat containing chamber 20 in the state I always set in an atmosphere such as the transfer chamber 10 with N ₂ gas is introduced, it opens the automatic rear door 22. Thereafter, the transfer mechanism 15 is driven, and the wafer boat 7 in the state in which the wafer W is stored in the wafer boat accommodation chamber 20 by the drive mechanism 15 is stored in the boat elevator 11a. It is transported and maintained on the installed thermos 51.

Then, when the wafer boat 7 is set on the boat elevator 11a, the boat elevator 11a is raised and the wafer boat 7 is conveyed into the process tube 1. At this time, the flange part 55 provided in the lower part of the wafer boat 7 abuts against the flange part 59 provided in the lower part of the manifold 2, and the process tube 1 inside is sealed.

In this state, the N ₂ gas in the process tube 1 is discharged through the exhaust pipe 3 and the inside of the process tube 1 is set to a predetermined vacuum state. In this vacuum setting operation, the on-off valve 64 is set in the closed state and the on-off valve 50 is opened to drive the vacuum pump 49. When the process tube 1 has reached a predetermined vacuum state, the process gas is introduced into the process tube 1 through the N ₂ gas introduction tube 4, and a desired process is performed on the wafer W.

In this operation, the gas conversion valve 70 and the opening / closing valve 64 are opened while the on-off valve 50 and the gas conversion valve 68 are closed, and the process gas supply unit 76 is driven.

Of course, at this time, the massflow controller 66 is also set to a predetermined operation state. After the treatment, the opening / closing valve 64 is closed, and at the same time, the processing gas in the process tube 1 is discharged through the exhaust pipe 3, and the inside of the process tube 1 is set to a predetermined vacuum state.

Thereafter, the gas switching valve 68 and the opening / closing valve 64 are opened in a state where the opening / closing valve 50 and the gas conversion valve 70 are closed, and the N ₂ gas supply part 74 is driven to provide a gas introduction pipe ( N ₂ gas is introduced into the process tube 1 via 4).

In the step where the N ₂ gas in the process tube 1 becomes equal to the N ₂ gas pressure in the transfer chamber 10, the wafer boat 7 is lowered through the elevating mechanism 11 to process the tube 1. The wafer boat 7 is carried out from the inside. Thereafter, the processed wafer W waits on the transfer stage 34 of the wafer transfer chamber 30 in the order opposite to the above-mentioned carry-on procedure. Return to the wafer carrier C.

As described above, the processing apparatus of this embodiment has a main feature in that the wafer boat accommodation chamber 20 is configured as a load lock chamber having a minimum volume that can accommodate only the wafer boat 7. That is, the wafer boat accommodating chamber 20 can replace the inside thereof with a vacuum atmosphere or a predetermined gas atmosphere from the air atmosphere through the pipes 23, 24, 25, and the like, and at the same time, the wafer boat 7 Since the volume is formed in a minimum volume that can accommodate only), the time required for such gas replacement and the consumption of inert gas are reduced, resulting in a structure that is very easy to clean up the environment.

In this embodiment, the lifting mechanism 11 and the transfer mechanism 15 are disposed in the transfer chamber 10 in order to make the wafer boat accommodation chamber 20 the minimum volume that only the wafer boat 7 can accommodate. In addition, since the processing apparatus of the present embodiment does not carry the wafer carrier C having a high probability of contamination into the wafer boat storage chamber 20 as in the prior art, the purge effect can be enhanced.

Thus, since the processing apparatus of this embodiment has a structure in which the wafer boat accommodation chamber 20 has a small capacity and tends to create a very clean atmosphere in which all dust generation factors are eliminated, the atmosphere is replaced with an inert gas. The wafer W can be conveyed from the wafer boat accommodation chamber 20 toward the transfer chamber 10 in the inside. The unprocessed wafer W brought into the process tube 1 from the wafer transfer chamber 30 into the wafer boat storage chamber 20 can be exposed to a vacuum atmosphere that is cut off from the atmosphere. Therefore, it is possible to prevent formation of a native oxide film on the surface of the wafer W and adhesion of impurities.

In addition, in this case, since the inside of the small-capacity wafer boat accommodation chamber 20 may be vacuumed, the wafer can be placed under a vacuum atmosphere for a short time, and the processing time can be shortened.

In addition, in this embodiment, the case where the transfer chamber 10, the wafer boat accommodation chamber 20, and the wafer transfer chamber 30 were arrange | positioned linearly was demonstrated, However, the transfer chamber 10 and the wafer boat accommodation chamber ( 20) and the wafer transfer chamber 30 do not necessarily have to be arranged in a straight line shape, and the arrangement is provided if the wafer boat accommodation chamber 20 is provided between the transfer chamber 10 and the wafer transfer chamber 30. Arbitrary may be sufficient.

In the above embodiment, the processing apparatus for semiconductor wafers has been described as an example. However, the present invention can be applied to processing apparatuses other than heat treatment or processing apparatuses for substrates other than semiconductor wafers, for example, glass substrates and LCD substrates. Of course it can.

Claims (12)

A conveyance chamber including a process chamber for performing a predetermined treatment on the object to be processed, a conveying means for carrying in and carrying out a holding body holding the object to be processed into the process chamber, and an inert gas for maintaining the interior of the conveyance chamber in a predetermined inert gas atmosphere. A holding means provided adjacent to the conveying chamber and having a volume capable of accommodating at least the holding body and capable of carrying and carrying the holding body into and out of the conveying chamber while the atmosphere in the conveying chamber is blocked from outside air. A sieve accommodating chamber, an internal atmosphere substituting means capable of replacing the inside of the holding body accommodating chamber with a vacuum atmosphere or a predetermined inert gas atmosphere, and adjacent to the holding body accommodating chamber; And a processing unit conveying chamber having a conveying means for conveying the same. The processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the holder housing has a minimum volume that can accommodate only the holder. The processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a transport mechanism provided in the transport chamber to transport the holder between the transport means of the transport chamber and the holder housing chamber. The said inert gas supply and exhaust means is an inert gas supply part, the gas introduction pipe which supplies the inert gas from an inert gas supply part to the said transfer chamber, and the inert gas in the said transfer chamber to exhaust outside. Treatment device with exhaust pipe. 2. The internal atmosphere replacing means according to claim 1, wherein the internal atmosphere replacing means includes an inert gas supply unit, a gas introduction pipe for supplying an inert gas from the inert gas supply unit to the holder housing chamber, and an inert gas in the holder housing chamber. And an exhaust pipe for exhausting the gas to the exhaust chamber, a vacuum pipe capable of exhausting the gas in the holder housing chamber to a predetermined vacuum state, and control means for controlling respective flows in the gas introduction pipe, the exhaust pipe, and the vacuum pipe. Device. The processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising detection means which is provided in the holder housing chamber and detects the presence or absence of the holder in the holder housing chamber. A conveyance chamber including a process chamber for subjecting the object to be treated with a predetermined process, a conveying means for carrying in and out of the holding body holding the object, to the process chamber, and an inert gas for maintaining the inside of the conveyance chamber in a predetermined inert gas atmosphere. It is provided adjacent to the conveying chamber and the supply and exhaust means, and has a minimum volume which can accommodate only the said holding body, and can carry in and carry out the said holding body with respect to the conveyance chamber in the state which interrupted the atmosphere in the conveying chamber from the outside. A holding body accommodating chamber, an internal atmosphere replacing means capable of replacing the inside of the holding body accommodating chamber with a vacuum atmosphere or a predetermined inert gas atmosphere, and installed in the conveying chamber, between the conveying means of the conveying chamber and the holding body accommodating chamber. It is provided adjacent to the conveyance mechanism which conveys the said holding body, and the said holding body accommodation chamber, and a to-be-processed object is stored in the said holding body accommodation chamber A processing apparatus comprising: a processing object conveying chamber having a conveying means for conveying inwardly and a setting means for setting the object to be processed conveyed by the conveying means into a holding body in the holding body accommodating chamber. The said inert gas supply and exhaust means is an inert gas supply part, the gas introduction tube which supplies the inert gas from an inert gas supply part to the said conveyance chamber, and the inert gas in the said conveyance chamber to the outside. A processing apparatus having an exhaust pipe for evacuating. 8. The internal atmosphere replacement means according to claim 7, wherein the internal atmosphere replacement means comprises: an inert gas supply unit, a gas introduction pipe for supplying an inert gas from the inert gas supply unit to the holder housing chamber, and an inert gas in the holder housing chamber. A exhaust pipe for evacuating the gas, a vacuum pipe capable of evacuating the holding body gas to a predetermined vacuum state, the gas introduction pipe, the exhaust pipe, and a valve mechanism for individually opening and closing each of the vacuum pipes. Device. 8. The processing apparatus according to claim 7, further comprising detection means provided in the holder housing chamber and detecting the presence or absence of the holder in the holder housing chamber. Transferring the object to the holding body accommodating chamber in which the holding body is housed; setting the inside of the holding body accommodating chamber to a vacuum atmosphere while blocking the atmosphere in the holding body accommodating chamber from the outside air; A step of introducing a gas, a step of conveying the holding body in the holding body accommodating chamber into the conveying chamber under an inert gas atmosphere when the atmosphere in the holding body accommodating chamber is substantially the same as the atmosphere in the conveying chamber, and the holding in the conveying chamber. And a step of bringing the sieve into the processing chamber, and a step of performing a predetermined treatment on the object to be accommodated in the holding body in the processing chamber. Transferring the object to the holding body accommodating chamber, the inert gas is introduced into the holding body accommodating chamber, and the holding body accommodating chamber is isolated from the outside air; and the atmosphere in the holding body accommodating chamber is conveyed. A step of conveying the holding body in the holding body accommodating chamber into the conveying chamber under an inert gas atmosphere at a step substantially equal to the atmosphere in the chamber; and a step of bringing the holding body in the conveying chamber into the processing chamber; A processing method comprising the step of performing a predetermined treatment on a received target object.